


galaxy wars: paper rings

by thisismelodrama



Series: galaxy wars universe [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ben and Rey are idiots, F/M, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Light Angst, Mention of Heart Attack, Textfic, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Valentine's Day Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:48:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22681981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thisismelodrama/pseuds/thisismelodrama
Summary: Ben finally had a plan, and a deadline he gave himself to find the courage to go through with it. By the time the year-end festivities were approaching, he decided it was time. He dwelled on it for a while, uncertainty clouding his mind.  Maybe it was tootackyto ask the love of your life to marry you on Christmas Eve, but he wanted to start the New Year as an engaged man. He wanted nothing more than to marry Rey and prove to her he could make her happy for the rest of their lives.(This is a special chapter for my social media au on Twitter, you can read the rest of the storyhere!)
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: galaxy wars universe [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1969972
Comments: 26
Kudos: 188
Collections: to read





	galaxy wars: paper rings

**Author's Note:**

> WELL. here we are again! it seems that i just can't stop writing for galaxy wars! rey & ben and when i saw the fandom was doing the #ReyloLove for Valentine's Day this idea popped in my head lol  
> i'm not sure i like what i wrote here, but my friend Mônica swears she cried while proofreading and even though she might be biased i trust her with my life...
> 
> i'm forever grateful for the support yall gave to me and galaxy wars. this story is really my babe and i love it so much, i'm just happy yall love it too.  
> enjoy, rats! happy Valentine's Day! <3
> 
> don't forget to leave kudos and comments xx

Ben had been thinking about it for a while. Probably ever since the first time he fucked her, because deep down he knew there wouldn’t be no one else after. But he let the idea hidden inside his mind for the future. He wouldn’t want to scare Rey away by the intensity of his feelings for her. In the first month they’ve been together, he was sure she liked him a lot. He never doubted it. 

Rey had a way to make him feel wanted and needed, and she always showed how much she loved to spend time with him. When he first found out about her past—probably two months after they started dating—, he understood. She was abandoned by her parents at a very young age and had been tossed around foster home to foster home, until she finally became an adult and started providing for herself. She had a deep fear that this would continue to happen in her life, and the fact that she took a leap of faith and decided to trust him not to leave just made him more sure that she was _the one_. 

However, it was still too soon and in his mind they had steps to follow to get to the point to get down on one knee. And yes, Ben knew that their relationship started in the most unconventional way, but he learned a lot about traditions with his parents. And even though Rey didn’t have that growing up, he wanted to make sure she had some normalcy in her adult life, especially in a life with him.

💍💍💍

Ben never thought that domestic life was a thing he would enjoy before meeting Rey. Having someone to wake up next to him, to come home from work, to share meals with and even the most boring things like doing grocery shopping and pay their monthly bills was something that he enjoyed sharing with her. So it was safe to say adjusting to life together wasn’t difficult. They knew each other so well by that point, they were so in sync with each other’s needs, it was only a matter of coming to terms that both of them needed to be willing to give in sometimes and adapt to each other. Not that this meant they were changing who they were, it was simply a way of saying they were aware relationships were built on mutual trust; giving and receiving. Ben was unbelievably happy, more than he thought he deserved. 

Which isn’t to say it was always easy. There were fights. For small things, like when Rey was supposed to take out the trash that week and forgot; she was always leaving her things scattered around the place, which drove Ben crazy. He always tried to be patient and understanding, but sometimes his short temper got the best of him, and yet she always gave him the same treatment in return.

One day they got into a huge fight and the irony is that he doesn’t even remember what it was about. He just remembers the paralyzing fear he felt when she stormed out of their apartment and spent the entire day out. A lot of scenarios played in his mind: she would never come back; he was an idiot for letting this stupid fight go so far; what would he do if he lost her.

Then, almost at midnight, the doorbell rang and there she was. Ben saw his worry mirrored on her face. She probably had the same thoughts that plagued him all day. 

“I can’t sleep without you.” She whimpered, still standing at their doorstep as if waiting for permission to come in. “I’m sorry.”

Ben pulled her into his arms and carried her to their bedroom. They undressed each other slowly and quietly, staring into each other’s eyes, knowing that sometimes words aren’t enough to express their feelings at all.

Nevertheless, when he entered her that night and the world around them stilled for a moment—because it was still _so good_ , so _wonderful_ to be inside her—, he whispered sweet words of praise and love, dotted every inch of her with kisses and held her tight, hoping that she somehow understood he would never let her go. 

  
  


💍💍💍

The idea of asking Rey to marry him came back in full force on an ordinary Sunday night. Rey was lying on the couch watching some TV show on HBO, while he did some crosswords on the armchair—something she often teased him about, “You’re such an old man”, which always led to him showing her _exactly_ what this old man could do in bed, which he thought was always the plan she had in mind when that happened. And he wasn’t complaining.

“Ben, you have to call your mother before it gets late. You know she goes to bed early.” She reminded him, eyes still glued on the TV.

And the certainty that he absolutely wanted to repeat this moment, however simple it may be, for the rest of his life hit him so hard that the dumbstruck look on his face got her attention. 

“What’s wrong?” She asked, eyeing him quizzically. 

“Nothing, sweetheart.” He got up all of a sudden, feeling a bit dazed. “I’ll call her from the office.”

“‘Kay.”

💍💍💍

As soon as the idea seeped into Ben’s mind, it was all he could think about, which made him go back to the state he was around her when they met each other. They were dating for almost two years by now and living together for almost eighteen months, so of course Rey noticed how he was always fidgeting and nervous, and how his gaze always lingered on her face for too long as he tried to wonder how her reaction would be when he finally popped the question.

Was it too _soon_ to even think about marriage? Two years of dating wasn’t even that much of a time span, some people waited far longer than that to take this step.

Does she even _want_ to get married?

He searched for memories in his mind, conversations that they must’ve had about their future and he couldn’t remember if she ever mentioned something about marriage. Anxiety cripped in his mind as he wondered why wasn’t it enough just living together, perhaps in a few years ahead having a baby with her—a small, chubby little thing that had her eyes and his hair, that would be enough for him. Marriage was just a piece of paper, anyway.

But images of Rey in a wedding dress kept invading his mind, a dazzling smile on her face as she's walking down the aisle towards him, towards their future together. Forever. And that was why he at least had to try. If she said no, he would be okay with it, as long as she stayed with him.

He hadn't realized he was staring at her reflection in the mirror while she brushed her teeth before work until she caught his attention. 

“Ben?”

“Yes?”

“You’ve been acting so strange lately, baby.” Concern flashed across her features and that was the last thing he wanted to see on her face. Damn, he really was an _idiot_ sometimes. “Is everything okay at work?”

“Super.” _That_ was the word that came out of his stupid mouth. He was pretty sure he’d never said that word in his life. Ever.

Rey narrowed her eyes, and now she definitely knew something was up, which was just… _Super._ “Okay, honey,” She stepped closer and gave him a chaste kiss on the mouth. “Whatever is going on inside your head, let me know when you’re ready to share.”

He just nodded dumbly as she left for work. He needed a plan quickly, and to gather up the courage to just fucking do it.

💍💍💍

Ben finally had a plan, and a deadline he gave himself to find the courage to go through with it. By the time the year-end festivities were approaching, he decided it was time. He dwelled on it for a while, uncertainty clouding his mind. Maybe it was too _tacky_ to ask the love of your life to marry you on Christmas Eve, but he wanted to start the New Year as an engaged man. He wanted nothing more than to marry Rey and prove to her he could make her happy for the rest of their lives. 

But first, he needed his mother’s help.

“It’s not Sunday.” His mother said as soon as she picked up on the first ring.

“Yes, I’m aware,” Ben answered, annoyed. “Am I not allowed to call you on any other day besides Sunday?”

“You are and I wish you would, but we both know you usually don’t,” Leia retorted. “So, you need something.”

“Yes,” He took a deep breath. “I’m gonna ask Rey to marry me.”

Leia gave a hearty-laugh on the other end, like she was expecting him to say that.

“Took you long enough.” She joked.

“Almost two years isn’t _long enough_ ,” he argues. “It’s a perfect amount of time to wait for you to be sure if—”

“Oh, Benjamin, cut the crap,” He could _see_ the way his mom rolled her eyes right now. “You’ve been wanting to marry that girl ever since you started dating her.”

“Yes,” he sighed. There was no point denying to his mother the truth. “Is it bad? That it’s always been _too_ intense?”

“No, not at all, son,” Leia laughed again, then continued in a more serious tone, “Ben, when you know, you _know._ Don’t be afraid of your instincts because they’ll always tell you the truth. _Always_.” 

Ben just hummed in agreement, an unusual tightness on his throat, his eyes welling up at his mother’s words. After a few seconds, he cleared his throat and asked what he wanted:

“I want to give her my grandmother’s ring.”

Leia kept silent for a moment on the other end. Ben thought she wouldn’t agree and what was he thinking, asking his mother for her family’s heirloom, something that was so important to her?

“Of course.” Leia agreed, interrupting his inner rambling. 

“Are you sure? Because I can always—”

“No.” And Ben could actually picture his mother’s serious face in front of him, the face she always made that said stop-being-stupid-and-listen-to-me-because-I’m-always-right. “Ben, is she the one? Are you absolutely certain you want to spend the rest of your life with her?”

He didn’t even hesitate as he said, “Yes.”

“So it’s settled.” Leia said in a firm tone that left no space for arguments. “She should have my mother’s ring.”

Ben felt something unfurling inside his chest, his mother’s approval and support affecting him in a way he wasn’t expecting. It was important to him that his parents accepted and welcomed Rey into the family—something that they did, ever since they met her—, because she didn’t have one and now she would. _Forever_. They stay a minute in silence over the phone, and then Ben asked: 

“How did you know, then, with dad? The right time to get married?”

“Oh, when I told him I loved him and he smiled in that cocky way of his and just said, _I know_.” 

“That does sound like dad, yes.” Ben laughed. “Thank you, mom.”

“I’m just glad you two found each other. Rey already is a perfect daughter-in-law and I can’t wait to plan your wedding with her.”

At that, Ben groaned. “You’re gonna make me suffer, huh?”

“Well, _of course_ , Benjamin, and you won’t complain even once.”

“Sure, Mom.”

“When are you planning to ask her?”

“Christmas Eve.” 

He pictured in his mind the perfect way to ask her: maybe they would have sex as soon as they woke up, and then he would get her breakfast in bed—something she loved, ever since they started dating— and then he would get down on one knee in their bedroom and would pop the question. He didn’t tell his mom any of this, though.

“That’s nice. Make sure to get down on one knee, I swear to god, if you don’t, Benjamin—”

“I will.” He assured her. “Don’t worry, mom. I’ll make everything perfect for Rey.”

“Good.”

Leia said she would mail him the ring one week before Christmas Eve and they said their goodbyes.

Everything was going according to his plan and he couldn’t be happier, hoping that soon he would be engaged to the love of his life.

And then his father had a heart attack.

💍💍💍

It was Rey who called him to tell the news. Ben was working late on a case in the office because he wanted to take off the day before Christmas Eve, and when he picked up the phone, she was crying. He immediately thought something happened to her, not even once thinking of his parents, which, when she broke the news to him, made him unbelievably guilty.

When he arrived at the hospital, he found Rey and his mother in the waiting room. Rey was still crying, visibly shaken up by what happened. 

“It’s gonna be okay, sweetheart.” He whispered and hugged her tight. “He’s gonna be fine.”

Rey looked at him with puffy eyes and nodded, resting her head on his chest. “Of course he will.” She said, more as a reminder to herself.

Ben looked at his mother. She was sitting on a chair and looked perfectly put together, like nothing was going on. She was always like this every time bad things happened when Ben was growing up; always the strong one, the one everyone could count on to not breakdown, the one everyone could count for support. Ben was sure he never loved his mom more in his life.

Ben took Rey’s hand and entwined their fingers, guiding her to where his mother was sitting. He put his other hand on his mom’s shoulder and squeezed a bit, to let her know she had his support.

His relationship with his parents, especially with his father, were once fragile and tumultuous by things they said and done when Ben was a teenager. Things were considerably better now. They’ve learned how to communicate and Ben became a different man after meeting Rey. He found himself wishing with all his might that he was granted just a little more time with his father. There were a lot of things they still could do. He wanted him to give Rey away on their wedding; and if he had children, he wanted them to meet their grandfather someday.

They sat side by side in silence as they waited and hoped for the best.

💍💍💍

Han’s recovery wasn’t an easy one, but the worst was over. The problem was: it delayed Ben’s plans to ask her hand for a while, as both of them helped Leia take care of Han, as he went through the healing process. But if anything, Rey’s eternally patience and empathy with his sometimes very grumpy father only increased his desire to propose. Ben had to restrain himself every time he came to pick her up at his parents’ house and found Rey reading to his father in his bedroom. They looked like they’ve been old buddies in a past life, perhaps, and he could tell how much his father enjoyed Rey’s company and vice-versa. His mother showed her how much she appreciated her help every time she could and Rey just seemed happy to be able to help.

That night, Rey tugged him along to their bedroom and started undressing him immediately. Ever since what happened to his father, she had been initiating sex almost every night. It’s not to say they didn’t had a healthy sex life—Ben wasn’t ashamed to say he was kinda addicted to fucking her every chance he got—, but every time he pushed inside her, she clung into him tighter, like she couldn’t get enough, always wanting him to be _closer_.

“Rey,” he murmured into her collarbone while he thrusted slowly into her, her little sighs against his neck and the way she scratched her nails against his back _always_ spurring him on. “What’s wrong?”

Rey stilled beneath him and he felt wetness on his neck as she sniffled quietly. He pulled away to look at her face and realized she was crying. The utter look of terror on her face almost broke his heart. 

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

“I just—I just keep thinking—what if it was _you_ and you didn’t _survive_ and—”

Ben rarely saw Rey crying in the time they were together. He was deep inside her and there was no sign of his cock softening, but maybe he should talk to her, seeing she was so upset. When he motioned to get off inside of her, she grabbed his ass and wrapped her legs around his hips, pushing him deeper and they both groaned at how _good_ it was. 

“ _Rey_ ,” he let out a grunt. “We should talk, sweetheart, I’m worried—”

“No.” she shook her head, meeting his thrusts, encouraging him to keep going. “Ben, don’t stop, just— _please_ ,”

He grabbed her hand that rested close to the pillow she laid her head in and laced their fingers together, nuzzling into her neck while his hips slammed into hers and his other hand reached down and played at her clit, feeling her shaking around his hips, her cunt clenching around his cock, so _close_ to finally coming.

“I’m not going anywhere, Rey.” he whispered into her hair and left soft kisses on every part of her face he could reach.

Tears still streamed down her face as she said, “You can’t _know_ that.”

“I _won’t_.” he promised. “We’ll grow old together, sweetheart.”

She held him tight as they came together and Ben promised he would prove to her how serious he was soon.

💍💍💍

Ben really didn’t mean for it to drag as long as it did and he cursed himself when he realized that the week everything in their life slowly came back to normal was Valentine’s Day week. It was a holiday neither he or Rey cared about much, they usually just ordered in and watched something together. It would be the corniest thing in the world if he actually asked her close to Valentine’s Day, and even though he had a ring for almost two months now, he told himself he would wait another week. Yeah, he could do it.

When he came home on Valentine’s Day, he found all the lights switched off, which was odd. Rey hated being in the dark and everytime she got home, all the lights were on. He frowned, unsure if she said something about working late today. He wandered through the hallway that leads to their bedroom, taking his phone out of his pants when he heard a whine coming from the bedroom. 

Ben thought Rey was crying again when he entered the room and found his girlfriend ( _hopefully_ soon-to-be fiancée) laying in bed with a piece of tissue stuck to her nose and a bunch of it scattered on the floor by her side of the bed.

“I’m sick.” she informed as soon as she looked up at him, the hoarseness in her voice sounding strange to his ears. “Kill me, _please_.”

“No way,” he replied and approached the bed slowly, sitting up beside her, his hand coming up to touch her forehead to see if she had a fever. She didn’t. She leaned in to his touch and he reached forward and dropped a kiss to her temple. “I’m gonna make chicken soup for you, sweetheart.”

“Ughhh, _kill me_!”

💍💍💍

Ben came back to the bedroom with soup and a bottle of water. He helped Rey sit up straighter on the bed and even though she complained about it, he fed her slowly, occasionally patting her hair and caressing her cheek. Rey liked to pretend she didn’t enjoy being taken care of when she was sick, but those were the moments she was the most needy and clingy and if Ben were being honest, he enjoyed it maybe a little bit too much. When she finished eating, he said:

“Come on, I’m gonna get you some medicine and then tuck you into bed.” 

He went to the kitchen and left the dirty dishes in the sink, thinking that he would put them in the dishwasher later. When he came back to the room, he quickly changed his work clothes into his pajamas, gave Rey some medicine and tucked her under the covers, trying to keep her comfortable and warm.

“I feel _miserable_.” she pouted. 

“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

Rey picked up another tissue by her bedside table, wiped her nose and said, “God, what would I do without you?” 

Ben looked at Rey and something just— _clicked._ He would never get the perfect moment if he kept waiting and he just _couldn’t_ wait any more.

“Marry me.” Ben blurted out and he could see his shock mirrored on Rey’s face.

She closed her eyes and whined, “Benjamin!”

“What? What is wrong?”

“Why are you _always_ stealing my spotlight?” she grunted. 

There was a _lot_ going on her face right now and Ben was so confused. She was crying and she seemed to be mad at him, all the while continuously blowing her nose on the tissue she was holding. It was oddly _endearing_ and _adorable_ , and he never loved her more. 

“Your spotlight?”

“ _I_ was going to propose!” 

“You—what?” 

“Yeah, I was. I can’t believe you did that, _boomer_.” 

He snorted and reached a hand under the covers to pinch her ass and she yelped. 

“Hey, I’m sick, you _can’t_ do that!” 

They looked at each other for a moment and Ben could see a smile forming at the corner of her mouth. “You were going to propose to me?”

“Yes,” she huffed out a breath. “I left the ring at Kay and Rose’s so you wouldn’t find it and I even measured your stupid fingers when you were sleeping and that was _not_ an easy task.”

“Stupid fingers, huh? That was not what you were saying two days ago, sweetheart.” he joked.

Rey groaned and put her hands on her face. “God, this is gonna go as the weirdest proposal in the history of the world.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have, I just—I couldn’t wait any more, Rey.”

“It’s okay.” she shrugged. “It’s weird, but it’s us. Ugh, why are we like this?”

“I don’t know,” he said with a smile. “But I love us.”

She gave him one of her dazzling smiles, “I love us, too.”

Ben leaned forward and gave her a chaste kiss on the mouth. 

“Oh, god,” she gasped. “Baby, you’re gonna be sick too.”

“Nah, I’m too strong for it to get me.”

Rey rolled her eyes. “Remind me to kick your ass because of this comment when I’m feeling better.”

“Of course, sweetheart.” 

Ben got up and went over to his side of the bed and opened his bedside table. He picked the small black velvet box and closed the drawer. He sat up, leaned on the headboard of the bed and looked down at Rey. 

Rey sat up and squinted her eyes at him. “Ask me properly, Benjamin Solo.”

Ben opened the box and took the ring out: a three-stone set on a yellow gold band, as his mother told him—and to be honest, he couldn’t believe he remembered this— and grabbed Rey’s left hand. 

“Rey Johnson,” he started, feeling tears welling up in his eyes, and Rey’s hand started to shake, and when he looked up at her face, she was crying too. “My sweetheart and sunshine, love of my life, will you please marry me?”

“Yes, of course I will, you _bloody_ idiot,” Rey replied and he slid the ring on her finger. She wiped her tears and then looked down at her hand, examining the ring. She looked dazed by it.

“Do you like it?” 

“Yes. It’s so beautiful.”

“It was my grandmother’s ring.”

Rey put a hand over her heart, looking like she was about to cry again. “Ben,” she whispered. “I don’t think—”

“Sweetheart, my mother wanted you to have it.” he assured her. “Both of us, actually.”

She closed the distance between them, pulled him into a hug and murmured “ _I love you_ ” while she peppered his face with kisses.

“I thought you were worried about me being sick, too.” he teased when she moved away from him. 

“I’m gonna take care of you,” she promised. “Don’t worry.”

“I’m not, darling.” he kissed her cheek and smiled at her.

“I love you, Ben. I’m so glad you’re gonna be my husband.”

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

That night, they slept holding each other, as usual, except this time their hands were entwined on Rey’s stomach, and his fingers idly traced the engagement ring, thinking that after belonging to his grandma and his mother, right now it couldn't have belonged to someone better.

💍💍💍

  
  


A week later, when Rey got home from work, she found Ben in the same position she was days ago and smiled. She was ready and more than happy to take care of her fiance. 

**Author's Note:**

> tbh while i was writing i thought of killing han. it was just something that popped in my mind and i was really going through with it, but i thought of how much pain canon!reylo went through and decided that it wasn't okay to do it in a fucking valentine's day fic. also, the thought of han giving rey away on their wedding and playing with his grandchildren made me go uwu so HARD i decided ben should be allowed to have more time with his father.  
> thanks for reading! <3
> 
> come say hi to me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/driversputa)!


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